Faceless Bombers in the mix

ESSENDON may be salivating at the thought of Joe Daniher turning games over the next decade, but it could be two older, lower-profile types who have more of an immediate impact when the Bombers open their 2013 campaign.

While elated to secure with a father-son pick a player they rated potentially the best of the draft pool - the son of former full-back Anthony Daniher - two relative unknowns, Dylan Van Unen and Nick Kommer, could also be vying for selection for round one.

Van Unen and Kommer are faceless men - even on Sunday they were the only two players selected in the draft last week with no photograph and biography attached to their profiles on the AFL website - but are rated highly as ready-to-go players by Essendon.

Van Unen, 22, played last season as a half-back flanker with stand-alone VFL team Frankston before the Dons chose him with pick No. 51.

Kommer, 22, is a midfielder from East Perth who has been training with Essendon this pre-season and was chosen with pick No. 73 in the fourth round.

Essendon coach James Hird said the mature-age players were capable of playing AFL games immediately, although he conceded Van Unen would need to add some bulk, whereas Kommer was already very fit.

''With Dylan and Nick we just wanted a bit of support for our team, the rest [of the club's draftees] are pretty young, but even Dylan and Nick are 22 so they are not super old," Hird told Essendon's website on Sunday.

''They allow us to have some depth and we expect them to push for senior selection next year.''

Van Unen's selection bolsters Essendon's depth in defence given the form and injury troubles the back line experienced this year.